Silhouettes
by AnvilBlue
Summary: The true cause of the destruction of Saint Ninians. A shadow from the Dark Forest comes to haunt the lands of Mossflower, causing the eventual destruction of Ninians. complete
1. Part One

-Silhouettes-

-Part One-

A biting wind blew through Mossflower Woods, the skeletal figures of the bare-limbed trees swaying beneath an endless gray sky, the noon sun hidden above the clouds. Snow covered the ground, rolling dunes of white desert as far as the eye could see, broken only by a few trees as white flecks of snow fell from the heavens. Plunging through the hillocks of snow, a small, heavily cloaked figure struggled, paws freezing horribly within thick boots as it searched the horizon, hopeful for the sight of its destination.

"C'mon, where are ye?" The figure muttered to itself, paws wrapped around itself as it struggled to keep warm, hopes slowly dying away as they were replaced by images of death, a frozen body. It paused for a moment, leaning against a tree for a moment, breathing hard. "It jus' 'as ta be 'round 'ere." Slowly, with paws shaking, it slid off its hood to reveal a young mouse maid, teeth chattering in the cold as she removed a small piece of parchment from her cloaks, a map.

_Lessee, map says it's northeast so it should be around here somewhere. _She wondered silently to herself, replacing the map before pulling here cloaks around her tighter, trying to keep out the cold. She took a few steps forward, peering through the snow for her destination in near desperation, she had been traveling for hours and ever so slowly the thoughts had been building, she though herself a fool to have come in such cold.

"Show yerself already." She muttered angrily, anger for the freezing snows that blocked her path as well as herself. Then she saw it, looming in the distance, standing up from the white desert as a monolith, Saint Ninian's Church. "Finally." She cried out in exasperation before jogging towards the church, eager to get this last leg of he journey over with. She made it about half way before her boot connected with something soft, sending her tumbling into a snow bank, but she stayed down only for a moment, jumping back to her foot paws quickly, snow covering her face as she held out her dagger. "All right, who did that?" She demanded, glancing around for anybeast, waiting a moment before she saw it, there in the snow, a small patch of fabric standing out from the snows.

_What the? _She wondered, stepping towards it carefully, wary of everything around here as she tapped the spot with her boot.

"Hello? Are you okay?" She wondered aloud as she slowly pushed away the snow with her boot, dagger still out and at the ready, but whatever it was it didn't move, the only sign of life being the light rising and falling of the snow as it breathed in soft, ragged gasps. Sheathing her dagger, the mouse maid fell to her knees, brushing away the snow carefully to reveal a shivering lump of reddish fur, a kind of creature she had never laid eyes upon before. "How long have you been out here?"

_Doesn't look like it's in too good of shape . . . _The mouse maid whispered silently in her mind, eyes taking on a look of worry as she pulled the creature into a sitting position, the only things she was able to tell was that it was alive, if only barely, and that it was a female.

"Jus' 'ang on, I'll 'ave ye someplace warm soon." She whispered to the unconscious creature as she pulled it onto her back, struggling beneath the weight before she made her way slowly forwards toward the church, the unconscious maids foot paws dragging through the snow. "It'll jus' a moment, don' worry 'bout it." Stumbling, the mouse maid soon reached the door to the church, a pair of great, oaken doors with intricate carvings covering the front. Setting her burden on the ground, the mouse maid proceeded to pound on the door, hoping that somebeast would be up and about. "C'mon, somebeast open the door!" She yelled, pounding on the door ceaselessly, pain shooting through her arms.

"Who's there?" A small panel of the door opened to reveal a pair of eyes, a curious glare plainly obvious as they stared at the mouse maid from within the church.

"Open up, I've got a beast in need of help!" She demanded, yelling through the hole at the beast on the other side. After a moment of silence the panel slammed shut and the door creaked open, a tall, sturdy otter stepping out from the darkness, holding a stave in one paw.

"Where is this beast?" The otter demanded, his eyes narrowed at the mouse maid, filled with mistrust towards her.

"She's right 'ere an' she need yer help immediately." She replied, immediately returning to the small, shivering bundle that she had brought and trying to lift her as the otter stood there, unmoving. "C'mon, ain't ye goin' ta 'elp a beats in need?"

"Aye." The otter answered, nodding his head in agreement, but his reluctance was obvious as he stared at the unconscious maid's foot paws, red fur standing out from the glistening snows. Grabbing the maid's body the two beasts carefully carried her into the church, candles lighting their way partially as they moved quickly down the aisle, bound for the back rooms where the beds were kept. "Father!" The otter called out, as they got closer to the door that led to the back rooms, a bright flickering light spilling from the doorway.

"What is it my son?" A voice called back before an old mouse appeared in the doorway, a kindly smile upon its face as it stood, wearing a flowing white robe.

"Injured beast, she found it out in the snows." The otter explained in short, quick sentences as he and the mouse maid came to the doorway.

"Come this way, quickly." He old mouse ordered, the smile disappearing from his face, displaced of look of utter seriousness as he led the way into the back rooms. Struggling with the unconscious maid, they stumbled after the mouse, finding their way to a clean empty bed near the fireplace before setting the maid down gently in the bed. Almost immediately the old mouse began to examine the unconscious maid, brow furrowed in concentration as he began to peel away the layers of wet cloth as the mouse maid looked on.

"Come, I'll show you to your bed." The otter spoke softly, pulling the mouse maid away from the bed and towards a small stairwell, hidden next a small bookshelf. "I'll show you to your room. Do not worry, Father Ninian is very skilled in these arts, your friend will be all right." The otter reassured her as the mouse maid glance over her shoulder to where the beast lay in bed, the old mouse treating her with the utmost care.

"Hopefully . . ." She muttered before following the otter and disappearing up the stairs.

---

_It's just over the next hill . . ._

_I know it's there . . ._

_It has to be . . ._

_So tired . . . _Her lungs burning, her limbs aching, the young vixen carried on through the winds that ripped through her fur, chunks of ice frozen all over her body as she struggled onwards. She muttered softly to herself, trying to convince herself to keep fighting back the wave of tiredness that slowly crept over her, she began to sink to her knees, unable to feel her foot paws as they stumbled and she pitched forwards into the snow.

_So tired . . ._

_Just need to close my eyes . . ._

_Just for a minute . . ._

_Just a little rest . . . _Eyes closing slowly, she gave into the demands of her tired body, allowing her mind to drift off into the unconscious realm, the darkness swallowing her up as she was slowly buried in the snows. Slowly her subconscious asserted itself, bringing her into the world of dreams and nightmares where she suddenly found herself standing in the middle of a dark hallway, both ends hidden in shadow.

"Where am I?" She wondered aloud as she glanced around the poorly lit hall, looking for some sign of life, some answer. Breathing softly, she wandered forwards down the hallway, following a feeling she felt deep within her heart, there was something to be found, something important. She knew it was there, lost somewhere in the darkness.

_What is this? _She silently wondered, glancing around the hall until finally she saw it there breaking through the darkness, an eerie red glow, the outline of a door. Moving quickly the vixen jogged to the door, hesitating for only a moment before passing through the threshold and into the room. It was a small, cramped room, perhaps only a few yards on each side. The entire thing bathed in a dark crimson glow from a single window on the opposite wall, the room was packed from floor to ceiling with white sheets covering something.

"What is this?" She wondered moments before the smell hit her, the smell of rot, the smell of death, it a strong acidic smell the forced her backwards into the wall where just moments ago a door had existed. Clasping her paws over her muzzle to keep the smell out she glanced around the room and realized where she was, the room was filled with bodies laying on shelves covered in crimson stained sheets that dripped with the blood of the dead, which pooled at the center of the room. Gathering he courage she made her way over to the wall opposite and lifted off the sheet to find a mouse laying there, body horribly mutilated, all the skin had been removed, its face frozen in what seemed to be a look of terror and pain.

_What happened?_

_Why has this happened?_

_What is this?_

"What are you doing here?" A voice demanded from behind her, startling the young vixen as she spun to face the beast, another mouse wearing what looked to be a healer's garb.

"Who are you?" She demanded, shaking with fear, confused by everything around her as she glanced the mouse up and down, seeing his bloodstained clothes, wondering if he had done this.

"I am the keeper of these halls, now answer the question." He demanded, stepping past the vixen to replace the sheets on the mouse, a fresh set of white sheets. Suddenly the room seemed to shift and change, the crimson replaced by a dull white light, everything was suddenly sterile.

"I don't know. I don't even know where here is." She replied, shaking as she glanced around, the door had reappeared and the smell of death had dissipated, leaving a strange emptiness in the room. "What is all this?"

"This is nothing, they are nothing." The mouse answered before stepping back towards the door as the room was suddenly enveloped in darkness. "This is transition. Your transition."

"Transition? What?" The vixen whispered to herself as the mouse and the room disappeared into the darkness.

"You shall understand soon, do not worry." A whispered response echoed back as the world twisted in darkness, swirls of color and shadow filling the vixen's vision as she stood, confused by it all.

_What is this all? Is this some sort of hell? Is this the Dark Forest? _She wondered silently as the world twisted around her, constantly in motion until she saw it, small pieces of a puzzle forming before her, a mirror of reality. She found herself in the church that she had heard about from her mother, her destination, she found herself in the aisle of the church, rows of candles lining the walls as she stood among chaos.

"Why?" She asked, sinking to her knees, falling into a pool of blood, the mouse lying before her, cut to pieces. Glancing around she found the church devoid of life, filled with death, the bodies of dozens of beasts, all mangled horridly, their blood staining the walls, coating the building with a fresh coat of crimson, a putrid smell hanging in the air. The shadows shifted on the wall, the forms of demons dancing through waterfalls of crimson in some sort of twisted celebration of the horrors that filled the church.

"There is no reason, there is no logic, there is only the truth. This is your truth. This is your reality, there is nothing more. Only the shadows." The mouse's voice whispered, echoing eerily in the building, as he lay before her, unmoving and obviously dead. Shuddering, the vixen glanced at her paws to find the stained with blood, their blood, her blood.

_No, this isn't. It can't be . . . _Slowly the world began to fall apart, bodies twisting horribly in the shadows as the world was swallowed by the darkness, she saw herself fall apart, skin melting away from paws, muscle and sinew twisting off into the darkness, bone falling away into dust and then there was nothingness, only silence as reality came back. The conscious world slowly flooding back in.

"Can you hear me?" A voice echoed in the dark as the vixen's eyes fluttered open to find a blurry face staring down at her, a stone ceiling above.

"Huh?" She wondered, confused as slowly the dream disappeared from her mind, some part of her desperately clinging to it, trying to remember it, knowing its importance. "Where am I?"

"Thank the heavens you're all right, my child. You're safe and sound." The mouse smiled warmly, relieved to hear that she was all right. "Welcome to Saint Ninian's."


	2. Part Two

-Silhouettes-

-Part Two-

_Saint Ninian's?_

_Why is this all so familiar? _The vixen wondered silently, staring at the room around her, a faint feeling of dread washing over her. The church felt eerily familiar, far too familiar for her own liking, a faint sense of déjà vu haunting her, a feeling that this was a place that she shouldn't be and yet she felt as though she belonged. She felt herself in conflict as she glanced up at the mouse, his eyes shining brightly, a comforting grin gracing his aged features.

_What is it? _She knew there was something she was forgetting, something that se needed to remember, something of great importance. Shaking her head slowly the vixen tried to clear her head, tried to rid herself of the confusion.

"You're lucky that you got here when you did. You have a rather horrid bit of frostbite on your foot paws, lucky for you they're still numb from the cold." The mouse whispered softly to the vixen as she laid in the bed, covered with thick blankets, a look of confusion upon her face. She stared up at the mouse, a question on the tip of her tongue, but she had no words to ask it with. "Are you all right?"

"Yes, I think so." She muttered in response, glancing over towards the fire, the warm glow casting eerie shadows across the ceiling.

_Why am I here? _She wondered to herself silently, rubbing her skull slowly with one paw as she contemplated the question. She tried to remember, but there seemed to be blank spots in her memory, she knew there was a reason she was there. She remembered being with her mother in their cave with the rest of the clan, warmed by a small fire as the freezing winter winds whipped around them, her father had gone off to get more fire wood before the snows began and then she was here in his church talking to a mouse, there was nothing in between, as if a page had been torn from the middle of a story.

"Are you sure?" The mouse asked, concern obvious on his face.

"Just a bit cold is all." She whispered back, shivering slightly as she pulled the blankets around her body tightly, the feeling just beginning to come back in her foot paws, along with the pain.

"Don't worry, I have some tea for you, it'll be ready in just a moment." The mouse motioned to a small teapot hanging just above the flames, obviously put there recently. "I will be back in just a moment." With that the mouse disappeared out into a side room sticking off from the back of the church, returning a moment later with two pots of lightly boiling water.

"What's that for?" The vixen asked, slightly scared by the boiling water, she had burnt herself before while helping her mother and had guessed what the mouse had in mind.

"This would be for you're footpaws." The mouse explained, setting both pots down next the bed as the vixen stared down at the twin pots. "Believe me, the consequences of not doing this are much greater. It'll be over soon enough, don't worry." The mouse explained with a reassuring smile, offering a paw to the vixen.

"What if I don't do it?" She asked in a soft voice, glancing up at the mouse, a nervous look on her face as the pain in her foot paws began to come back slowly.

"You could possibly lose a footpaw to it." He replied, the vixen quickly taking his paw as he said those words, swinging her legs carefully over to his side of the bed. "Just try to stay still, this may take a while and it may hurt quite a bit." Kneeling down the mouse took the vixen's footpaws and slowly eased them into the water, which was now just barely boiling. At first the heat hurt, her footpaws throbbing painfully as the mouse rubbed the feeling back into them, but slowly it subsided, leaving a gentle numbness.

"Thank you . . .um . . ." The vixen paused for a moment, not remembering if she had asked the mouse his name.

"Father Samuel, and you?" The mouse answered with a smile, rising to his footpaws.

"Sana." The vixen replied, offering a paw to the mouse.

"Pleased to meet you, Sana." The Father said moments before a loud whistle cut through the air. "And it appears that the tea is just about done, just one moment, my child." With that the mouse took the steaming pot from off the fire, disappearing once again into the side room before reappearing moments later, two cups of tea in paw. Offering one to the vixen e sat down on the bed next to her.

"Thank you, Father." Sana nodded her thanks, staring at the tea for a moment before taking a small sip, it was quite bitter. "What is this?"

"It's to help with the pain." The mouse answered, pointing down at her frostbitten foot paws, before taking a sip of his own tea. "Should help you to get to sleep as well."

"Could do with a bit of rest . . ." Sana murmured airily, blinking slowly as her eyelids began to drop, taking a long sip se finished off her tea.

"You had best get some, tomorrow is another day." The mouse whispered, hopping off the bed, taking her cup as he went, the vixen slowly leaning down against the bed until her head hit the pillow, eyes closing as she faded into unconsciousness. "Sleep well, my child." With that the mouse disappeared up the stairs into the upper level of the church, blowing out the lamps as he went.

---

"So what are you doing out in this storm anyways, Ciel?" The otter asked the mouse maid as they walked into one of the upper rooms, most of them were empty save for a half dozen beasts that had nowhere else to go.

"The elders sent me ta ask the father for his blessings during these times. They've gone all superstitious I guess. Think that the storm's the end o' the world." Ciel muttered, rolling her eyes as she peeled off her outer cloaks, all of them soaked straight through, tossing them onto the floor she hopped onto the single bed in the room. "Wish that they could 'ave waited fer a break in the storm . . ."

"Aye, that would have been better then this." The otter replied, holding up one of the cloaks to punctuate his words. "So where did you find the vixen?"

"Out in snow, seemed like she was heading here. Wonder why though. Maybe she got 'erself in the same mess that I did." The mouse maid said with a shrug before falling back into the bed. "So how're thing 'ere, John?"

"Same as usual, had a few bandits hanging 'round lately. That was why I was hesitant to let you in, for all I knew they could be usin' you as a decoy or somethin'." The otter replied as he leaned against the wall by the door, toying with his stave idly, glancing out the door into the darkened hallway, lit sparingly by small oil lamps.

"Don't sound too good, what sort o' beasts are they?" Ciel asked, curious as she sat up on the bed, stretching her tired muscles.

"Looked like they were weasels or something like that. Were pretty big, but we didn't see 'em too much, mostly heard 'bout them from some of our other guests. Could 'ave been otters for all I know." The otter said with a look that plainly said 'fat chance', grinning at the mouse maid before glancing out into the hall to see Father Samuel approaching quickly. "Father Samuel's coming, should have news of yer friend." John muttered, moving to Ciel's bedside before moments later the old mouse entered the room, his ever present smile showing brightly.

"How is she, Father?" Ciel asked immediately, concern clearly written on her features.

"Sana's a lot better then she could have been if you hadn't found her, my child. Only had a touch of frostnip, should be better by morning. It's a miracle you found her in this storm." He answered, glancing out the window at the snowscape below, the rapidly descending sun hiding much of the landscape as night drew near. "Don't think there's anything more we can do till the morning, she's sleeping for the moment."

"Did she say why she was out there?" John asked, glancing out the frosted window at the foreboding landscape, wondering why any sane creature would be out in such a mess.

"No, but she seemed like she was rather confused. Not sure if she would even know if I asked her." Father Samuel replied with a light sigh. "So, Ciel. What are you doing here during such a storm?"

"Elders sent me for yer blessin'. Figured I wasn't doin' nothin' I guess." The mouse maid said with an annoyed sort of grin. "But I think that can wait fer tomorrow. Yeh seem tired."

"Aye. That I am. I think we all best get a bit of shuteye. Would do us good." The old mouse sighed, looking more aged then usual as he walked towards. "Good night you two."

"G'night Father." The two said in unison as the mouse disappeared into the hallway before they parted company from one another, bound for the land of dreams. 

---

As she slept, the vixen tossed and turned in her sleep, demons pursuing her through her subconscious, nightmares and dreams merging into one as she found herself in a very familiar place.

_Home . . ._ She whispered in her mind, finding herself just outside the tent her family lived in, a newly caught dove hanging over a gently burning fire, cooking slowly.

"Mom?" She whispered softly as she hurried to the tent, poking her head inside to find it empty, the cots where they slept empty and unkempt. Glancing up, Sana checked the sun; it had to have been late noon at least. It was odd that the beds should remain unmade; her mother was normally a stickler about such things.

_Weird . . . _She thought silently, withdrawing from the tent, glancing around at her surroundings to find them empty, completely devoid of life. The birds, the wind, the entire world sat eerily silent, holding its breath for some unseen event.

"Mom?" She called out, hopeful for some sign of life, some sign of her family. Her mother, her father, even her little brother, anybeast would be fine. "Dad? Teague? Anybeast out there?" She called out, a slow wave of fear washing over her, a panic slowly beginning to build within her as she walked away from the camp, following an old set of paw prints that led to a small pond.

_C'mon, somebeast be here . . . _She wished, closing her eyes for a moment before she suddenly felt something beneath her footpaws, something warm and sticky. Refusing to open her eyes for a moment she tried to calm her racing heart before to looked down to find herself ankle deep in a crimson puddle. Her brother lying half covered by leaves and flies. _No, not this again. Not this. Not this . . . _She chanted over and over in her mind, refusing to believe what she saw there.

"Teague?" She whispered in a choked voice, falling to her knees as she stared at the corpse. It had been completely mutilated, the head torn half off from the body, limbs pulled from their sockets, pieces of his body littering the ground, blood splattered everywhere. "Why?" Sana cried softly, staring into the corpses eyes, clouded over in death, frozen in a look of anger.

"Sana . . ." A voice echoed softly, something from her right, seemingly distant, but eerily familiar. It was a beast she knew well. Glancing up from her brother's corpse, she looked in the direction of the voice to find somebeast standing just up the path, its features hidden, merely a silhouette of a creature. "Come, Sana."

"Who are you?" Sana demanded, rising to her foot paws, eyes burning with anger. She wanted answers, she waned a reason for the carnage she witnessed, there had to be something for her to find, somebeast to pay for their crimes.

"Come, Sana." The silhouette repeated, a cloaked paw beckoning her further as it moved further down the path, growling slightly the vixen gave chase to the shadow, tearing down the path, but never seeming to get any closer.

"What is this?' She yelled out, heart racing as she pounded down path and finally found herself in the small clearing right next to the river and she found what remained of her family.

_Not again . . ._

_Damn it, why?_

_Why all of this? _She demanded silently as she stood still in the middle of the clearing, her parent's lifeless corpses bound to twin stakes, their blood pouring into the river. Sacrifices for some unknown cause, their bodies cut all over, barely recognizable, but Sana knew, she felt them, she felt the emptiness that came with being alone, only a silhouette to keep her company. A representation of what she felt, nothing, but an empty shell. Devoid of life and caring, devoid of what makes a beast a beast, just shadows and darkness left.

"Welcome to your truth, Sana." The silhouette whispered and finally the vixen recognized it, it was the mouse that she had found before, the dead corpse. Suddenly the shadows cleared and there he stood, blood dripping from his animated corpse as he smiled at her. "Welcome to your transition, it shall soon be complete."

"Transition?" Sana whispered softly, voice choked by tears. "What is this?" She demanded, wanting to rip the mouse to pieces as her brother had been, she wanted vengeance, she wanted closure, she felt the anger rising and she basked in its comforting glow. She wanted to feel it. She needed to.

"Do not worry, it shall soon be complete. The nothingness is, but temporary. You shall soon understand all of this." The mouse whispered, body slowly disintegrating before her eyes, skin, muscle and sinew meshing into one before twisting away in an unfelt breeze, the world following suit. Before she knew it she found herself alone in the darkness, her only friend.


	3. Part Three

-Silhouettes-

-Part Three-

In her dreams the young mouse maid found herself wandering the halls of Saint Ninians, lost with the twisting corridors of her own subconscious. She was looking for something, something of great importance, but she found nothing save for long empty hallways, twisting endlessly into the dark. The church was dark, only a few lamps still lit at such a late hour, glancing up she felt the moon high above her, it must have at least been midnight.

_Where is it? _Ciel muttered silently as she walked down the hall, eyes flicking left and right in search of her elusive prize, she felt it, she knew it was nearby.

"Where are ye?" She demanded in a soft voice as the corridor curved sharply to the left and suddenly she found herself in the main aisle of the church, finding it lit brightly by candlelight.

_What the? _There, on the pedestal where a statue normally stood, sat somebeast wrapped in shadows, staring up at the ceiling, seeming to look through the stone and into the sky. Moving carefully the mouse maid made her way slowly down the center of the aisle, glancing around at what must have been hundreds if not thousands of candles lining the church pews, lighting up the entire room with a soft yellow glow.

"Hello?" Ciel whispered softly as she moved within a few feet of the creature.

"We are safe here." The creature whispered as it stared up at the ceiling. "This is a place of light, no darkness can tread this path. The shadows cannot come." It muttered cryptically in a soft, effeminate voice, a long gray cloak hiding most of its features, only the face revealed to the world. It was a vulpine, definitely a female, with black fur as dark as the night.

"Who are you?" Ciel asked, confused by the vixen's words, staring at her face, trying to place it.

_Who indeed? _She muttered silently, wondering where she had seen the fox before, there was something oddly familiar, but the vixen cut off hr thoughts with a reply.

"I am what is left. I am the empty pathetic shell. I am all that remains of she." The vulpine answered cryptically, a look of disgust present on her face as she spat out the words, hatred towards herself plain to see. With a glance at the mouse maid a grin spread over the vixen's face. "I am what you shall soon be. I am nothing at all. The beginnings of everything."

"What?" Ciel asked, confused by the vixen's words, it was all gibberish to her, just a beast rambling on about nonsense.

"Do not be afraid, all shall make sense soon." She replied with a knowing smile, bright blue eyes shining beneath her black fur as she stared into Ciel's eyes, almost as though she was trying to tell her something more. There within the blue orbs was desperation. There was something more to be said, something that remained silent, buried within the vixen.

"Sana?" Suddenly the mouse maid realized where she knew her from, the fur was different, but she knew it had to be the vixen, there was nobeast else it could be.

"Not anymore." The vixen replied before glancing behind Ciel, a look of fear coming over the vulpine. "You should go now, they are coming."

"Who's comin'?" Ciel asked, glancing behind her to find nothing, the church lay empty save for the two of them, the main door sealed shut for the storm.

"You shall see, but not now. You must go now." Sana repeated, more urgent this time, a tiny twinge of fear in her voice as she slowly stepped off the pedestal onto the floor next to Ciel, a look of determination spreading over her features.

"What is it?" The mouse maid demanded, following the vixen's stare to the door where she found her answer. There it stood, just before the door, a shadowy silhouette filling up Ciel's entire field of vision as it walked slowly towards them, the candles disappearing into the shadows, darkness overtaking the light as it came closer, threatening to swallow the entire world.

This can't be . . . It just can't be . . . Ciel chanted silently within her mind, staring up at the horror that stood before her, the shadow-beast. 

"You must go now." Sana pleaded softly, staring into the shadow's 'eyes' if they could be called that, great pools of darkness, but Ciel stood rooted to the spot, staring up at her nightmare, this figment of her imagination that stood before them. Suddenly it lunged and Ciel felt herself falling, shoved out of the way by the vixen as she took the blow, the world falling apart slowly, leaving the mouse maid in a world of nothing, reality slowly creeping back in as her eyes fluttered open slowly and she found herself lying in a soft bed, golden rays of sun light streaming in the window. It was a new day.

_What was all of that? _The question echoed in her mind softly, the dream still fresh in her mind though she wished the nightmare would leave her, images of that horror still there. The question stuck, echoing softly, always unanswered.

---

At such an early hour the kitchen stood mostly empty, save for the otter guard of the church, John, who stood at the oven, flipping a batch of flat cakes idly. Rubbing her eyes tiredly, Ciel wandered into the kitchen a confused sort of look on her face as she glanced around, searching for something that could not be found.

"G'mornin', Ciel." John said with a tired grin as he watched the cakes slowly brown before glancing up at the mouse maid to find her looking quite pale. "Ye feelin' all right?"

"Yeah, it's just . . ." She replied, pausing to glance around the room, as if she were fearful of somebeast listening in. "You ever get one o' those feelings?"

"Hm? What d'you mean by that?" The otter asked, setting his spatula down on the oven as the cakes cooked, turning to face the mouse maid.

"I'm not sure. It's jus' that somethin' jus' don't feel right." Ciel muttered softly, a look of confusion on her face as she tried to work trough it all. "Somethin' bad. I don't know . . ." She said as she collapsed onto one of the benches, shaking her head slowly.

"Don't worry, ye probably jus' had a bad dream or summat. Everything's fine." The otter replied, hopping up onto the table next to the mouse maid, patting her shoulder in an attempt to comfort her as she sat with her face buried in her paws. "What was it anyways? I don't think I've ever seen you like this . . ." He asked, a bit curious, Ciel had always been a strong beast, he knew it had to be something big for it to have gotten to her that much.

"I don't know, it was just . . ." She paused for a moment to take a breath, calming herself, trying to gather her thoughts. "You ever had one of those dreams where it seems like it's the end?"

"No . . .can't say that I have. I mean, I've had one of those 'falling' dream, but everybeast has those." John muttered in response, shrugging his shoulders before moving back to the oven, sliding the done flat cakes off onto the counter to cool, the other beasts would be waking up soon.

"Nah, that's jus' your fear of heights talkin' to ya." She smiled a little, trying to be more casual, the effects of the dream finally starting to wear off. "I'm not even really sure what it all was. There was just this shadow . . .I don't know, it just gives me the chills thinkin' 'bout it."

"Shadow?" John asked, glancing up from the oven, a look of interest on his face, staring at the mouse maid

"Aye, weird kind of shadow . . .and the vixen was there too . . . " The mouse maid muttered, sorting out the details slowly in her mind as the bits and pieces began to fall into place before she glanced up to find the otter's eyes boring into her. "Meh, but it's jus' a dream though, right?" She mumbled with a shrug, avoiding the otter's stare, his eyes unnerving her as she sat there shuffling nervously. "Right, John?"

"Yeah . . .just a dream." He echoed the mouse maid, shaking off the weird feeling he had gotten when she had said those words, the was something about it. "Maybe you should tell Father Samuel once he gets up since you need to speak to him anyways. Perhaps he could help." The otter said, taking on a more professional tone as he began to set the tables, but he was worried, Ciel knew that much, he always tried to lose himself in work when he was nervous, even when they were dibbuns.

"Okay, I guess. Here lemme help ye, can't have ye workin' yerself ta death." She said with a hollow laugh, she was nervous too, not quite sure what for, but she knew there was something to be anxious about.

_All just a dream. All just something pointless, meaningless dream. Nothing more. _She whispered to herself silently, chanting the words over and over in her mind, hoping that doing so would make it true.

Nothing, but a dream? Lies . . . A voice at the back of her mind whispered, its words lost within the corridors of her mind, smothered by her conscious mind. Everything would be all right, that was what she was to believe. Everything would work out in the end. That was the way things were. 

---

Everybeast, only about a half dozen beasts being around excluding the Father and John, was well on their way to finishing their breakfast when Father Samuel finally appeared from his chambers, walking into the kitchen with a dark ambience about him, an almost saddened look upon the old mouse's face.

"G'mornin', Father." John bade him in a cheerful tone, but there was worry apparent in his tone. "Is something wrong?"

"No, my son. Just this storm, can be quite depressing for a beast getting on in their seasons. I'm just wishing for this winter to be a quick one, that's all." The old mouse replied, but John really didn't believe him as the Father sat down at his usual spot, the otter serving him a fresh stack of flat cakes, looking the mouse over, trying to figure out what was eating at him.

"Don't worry, Father, I'm sure it will be." John said with a smile, trying to reassure the mouse.

"Well, at least the sun has smiled upon us this day, that at least we can be thankful for." He answered with a fake sort of smile, trying to end the conversation on a more cheerful note.

"Yeah, I suppose that is cause for a bit of cheer." The otter replied with an equally fake smile before shifting the conversation. "So how is the vixen today?"

"Oh, she's fine. The rest did her well, I just checked her a few minutes ago, she was resting quite comfortably. Her foot paws have healed up nicely too." The Father said, perking up a bit now that he had something positive to speak of.

"That's good to hear, Father." The otter said before turning to find several empty tables, dishes needing to be cleaned and tables cleared. "Looks like I've got a bit of work to do for now though, I'll see you around noon time." With that the otter left, going about his kitchen duties, worry still driving him on. Father Samuel sat, watching for a moment, shaking his head for a moment at the otter, he knew the signs as well, but he shrugged it off and went about his breakfast.

"Father?" Just as he was finishing his meal a feminine voice broke the soothing silence of the kitchens, breaking the old mouse out of his thoughts.

"Yes, Ciel?" He asked, glancing up to find the mouse maid standing there, shuffling her footpaws nervously as she glanced around the kitchen.

"There was something I wanted to tell you . . ." She began, pausing to see the Father's reaction.

"Go on." He urged her, curious.

"Last night I had the strangest dream and I haven't been able to shake it." She started again, trying to find the words to explain, but finding herself unable to put them together.

"Tell me about it, my child." Father Samuel said, giving her a comforting smile.

"I'm not sure if it meant anything, there was this shadow and the vixen . . ." She went on, explaining the dream in as much detail as possible, as the old mouse waited through it patiently.

"Perhaps . . ." He began once she had finished. Finding that he to was at a loss for the proper words. "Perhaps this is not so much a dream. I had a similar dream last night and such happenings can not be tossed away as mere fantasy, but of course dreams are always written in metaphor, one can never completely trust them to be exact." The Father continued, standing up from the bench, beckoning for the young mouse maid to follow as he moved into the main church building. "Is this the place of your dreams?"

"Yes, but also no." Ciel answered, taking a look around, focusing for a moment on the statue of their creator. "That wasn't there and there was somethin' else, somethin' different. Everythin' seemed ta be darker, shades of gray I suppose. The vixen was here." Ciel trailed off, fearful to be standing in the same spot as she had in her dreams, it was almost as if it made the fantasy reality. It was making the false true.

"Yes, she does seem to be tied into all this somehow . . .as if she was of the shadow, but somehow opposed to it . . .a light in the darkness as it were." The mouse muttered, trailing off into silence as they both stared up the main aisle at the great doors to the outside, that was where the darkness came from, that was the place.

"Father? Ciel?" A voice snapped them out of their thoughts as they found John suddenly beside them, a panicked look on his face. "Quickly, come with me." He ordered them both, taking off like a bullet bound for the back rooms.

"What is it, John?" Ciel called after him, catching up with the otter quickly as Father Samuel hobbled as quickly as he could with his weathered body. "What is it?" She asked, as she stood by his side in their makeshift infirmary, the otter staring at the fires.

"Just look, Ciel." He said, pointing as Father Samuel caught up with them.

"The vixen . . ." The old mouse whispered in a knowing tone.

"Yes, Father . . .I know what ye mean . . ." There before them the vixen's bed lay empty, everything gone from the room. "Did ye check 'round, John?"

"Yes, Ciel. She's nowhere to be found within these walls . . ."

---

_Have to get home . . ._

_Have to get there . . . _Plunging through the snows, Sana fought her way on, a dark rage pushing her onwards through the pain in her foot paws. She knew what she was doing, she knew why, she knew where to go, she knew how. She knew it all save for what she needed to know. _Have to find out. Need the truth._

_Folly, vixen. _A voice whispered in the back of her mind, echoing within her skull. _You already have your truth. You have left your answers on the path behind you. There everything lies. The nothingness from within._

_No, that isn't truth . . ._She whispered back silently, fighting back the rage that threatened to consume her, a darkness buried deep within her. _It cannot be . . ._

_Do not worry, vixen. The transition shall end soon and all shall be as it should be._


	4. Part Four

-Silhouettes-

-Part Four-

_Have to get home . . ._

_Have to get there . . ._

_Have to find the truth . . . _The vixen chanted these words over and over in her mind, trying to rid herself of the voice as it laughed softly at her, pitying her.

_You already have your truth, vixen . . ._

_All you seek is the end . . ._

_You shall see, do not fear . . ._

_The transition is nearly complete . . ._

Throwing herself through the snow she ignored the pain in her muscles as they worked far past fatigue, ignored the burning of her footpaws as the frost tore at them, she simply ran on as if there were nothing more then the snow before her and her final destination, there was no pain, no emotion, just a simple phrase repeating over and over in her mind.

_Have to get home . . ._

_Have to find the truth . . ._ Sana's thoughts echoed endlessly as she ran, stumbling through the snowdrifts, trees whipping past her in a blur, bare-limbed bushes tearing at her clothes and fur. She knew where she was going, the path was all too familiar, she knew the way by heart and soon, just as the sun began to sink from its apex she found it.

_Truth . . . _Her mind whispered softly, all the voices silencing themselves as she stepped into the small clearing in which her family had lived, their tent just barely showing above a drift of snow. Rushing over to the tent, the vixen fell to her knees and began to dig in the snow, tossing away the snow carelessly, uncaring for her paws as the ice stung and burned them, she only cared about the truth, any truth.

"Something, anything . . ." Sana muttered to herself as she cleared the snow away from the tent flap just enough for her to reach the small piece of metal that sealed it shut, as quickly as she could she tore open the flap, nearly ripping it from the tent before peering inside. At first she recognized it, the warm home that she had lived in for so many seasons, her family's belongings spread across the tent bottom, but soon she saw through it, a simple illusion of memory and found truth. Holes littered the tent, snow spilling into the insides, covering most of it, what was showing was rotted and seemingly ancient, left in pieces for nature to retake.

_How long has it been? _She wondered silently, as she collapsed on the ground, fatigue finally catching up with her, heart pounding away in her chest ceaselessly. Staring at the tent she couldn't help, but wonder, how could it have taken her so long to get from here to Saint Ninian's? It felt as though it had only been days since she had seen her family, since her home had been a warm place, a refuge from the world, but now it was in pieces, a broken window to the past. She had fallen asleep in the fall and awakened in the winter, whatever was in between was beyond her comprehension, beyond a simple explanation.

_Where are they?_

_Why aren't they here?_

_Why did they leave? _A pitiful voice whispered in the dark recesses of her mind, a child's voice, eerily familiar as it spoke in pained and confused tones, no beast to comfort it as it sat alone in the darkness, isolated from the world.

_They aren't coming back, child . . ._

_They have left this plane . . ._

_They cannot come back now . . . _Another familiar voice answered the child as the vixen felt consciousness slipping away from her, the dark walls coming around her. Quite suddenly she found herself in darkness, a single light seemingly shining on a young vixen, perhaps only barely out of her dibbunhood, who sat in the corner of what seemed be a small room, hugging her knees close to her, the soft sounds of crying filling the room.

"Why can't they?" The little fox maid asked through her sobs, glancing up at Sana with mournful eyes, but she couldn't move, she found herself rooted to the spot. "Why can't they be here?"

"Once you leave you cannot come back." The voice replied, echoing about the room as a cloaked figure stepped from behind Sana, walking to the younger vixen's side, kneeling down next to her. "Do not worry, it was the right thing, my dear."

"Why?" The young vixen asked as tears flowed freely from her eyes, staining her cheek fur as she stared at her paws, died crimson with blood.

"Do not worry, all shall become clear soon . . ." The cloaked beast whispered softly before fading away into the darkness, the light suddenly spreading to reveal the scene, a forest lay deathly silent around them, only Sana and the younger vixen left in the small clearing.

_Not this . . . _Such a familiar place, a familiar time, such a familiar emotion Sana found herself wrapped within. Falling to her knees she found herself within the same nightmare, her parents stood, bound to a pair of wooden stakes, their blood running from their bodies into the river. Their lifeless eyes stared up from unrecognizable faces, their bodies cut to ribbons, much of it missing.

_Not this again . . ._

_I won't believe it . . ._

_I can't . . . _Sana whispered silently in her mind, squeezing her eyes shut, refusing to see the scene laid out before her, the last bits of innocence clinging to past images and memories, happier times.

_Believe it, vixen . . ._

_All you have left now is the truth . . ._

_That is why you are here is it not? _The voice asked her and she felt a paw upon her shoulder, a comforting paw, its claws digging into her shoulder gently.

_Not this kind of truth . . ._

_Not this . . . _She whispered in response, the last of her innocence clinging onto existence as she felt the emotions draining away.

_Ah . . ._

_Only wish to see the truth palatable to you?_

_How naïve . . ._

_It is little wonder that you walk in darkness . . . _The voice replied with a soft chuckle, the paw fading away slowly as the vixen felt something lift itself from her mind, leaving nothing behind. A great weight had been lifted, in its place came strength, the fear were gone and she found herself with nothing to make her real, she found herself alone with the shadows. The darkness held comfort, it had taken away all the pain, it hid it in the shadows where no beast could see it, unknown and unfelt.

_And so it ends . . ._

_Welcome to the shadows, dear vixen . . ._

---

"Hm . . .I know that book is around here somewhere . . ." Father Samuel whispered to himself as he searched through his personal library back within the warm confines of Saint Ninian's. Running a paw over the spines of the many books, mainly books of conduct as well as the personal journals of all the fathers that had come before him with a few legends thrown in here and there. The old mouse had read most if not all of these books during his time in service to the church, beginning when he had been a simple child, looking for some purpose in life.

_Ah, here you are. _He thought silently as his paw stopped on the spine of an old, worn book. Pulling it from the bookshelf, Samuel wandered over to his reading chair, staring out the window for a moment, hopeful to see some sign of Sana, Ciel or John. They had all been gone quite a while, Ciel and John going off to track the vixen as soon as she seemingly disappeared from the church bed. Plopping down in his chair, the old mouse glanced over the book he's taken from the shelf, finding it too be quite old and fragile, the leather cover stretched and coming apart in several places, the title had long since worn off from time, but of course, one must never judge a book by its cover.

Opening it carefully, the old mouse began to read silently to himself, it was a legend he knew well, one that nearly all beasts knew to some extent, the tale of the dark forest. Though its origins had long since been lost in time, the book had no references to its creation, only its existence and its purpose. Reading on through the parts he knew, mainly just theory on what it was like there, purely speculation since very few beasts ever came back from such a place. Finally the old mouse found what he was looking for, the legend of the 'Gate Keeper', the guardian, the 'Silhouette' of the Dark Forest as it was often called.

It had been one of the many stories about the Dark Forest that had been forgotten over the seasons, fading into obscurity, remembered only as a faint legend recorded in books. Many of the previous fathers of Saint Ninian's had called the story a fairy tale, dismissing as simple fiction, mainly for the terrible consequence of the existence of such a creature, but Father Samuel had been fascinated by the story, a strange sort of curiosity filling him when he had read the story for the first time as a young beast. He still remembered the tale nearly by heart.

The Gate Keeper of the Dark Forest was not a beast by any stretch nor had it ever been one, it was at most a personification of the forest itself, a silhouette of it, a mere shadow in the darkness that beasts would pass on their where to find loved ones past and friends gone. It was created of pieces of the beasts that lived there, taking away the pain of death that many beasts had upon reaching the metaphysical plane, death's were seldom enjoyable and with such a memory few beast's souls could survive the transition from life to death. It had been for this purpose that the Keeper had been born into existence and it was in this regard that it served the beasts of the physical plane, living off of death itself.

Unfortunately, as with all things, there were consequences for these actions, as the 'Silhouette' absorbed the pain, the sorrow and the shock from the dead it would slowly become corrupted, until it was cast from the metaphysical plane, finding its way into the physical world where it was to starve, but nothing ever works out so simply. Whenever a Keeper was cast out it would survive for perhaps only a limited time in the real world, able to feed off of the corruption of the living, the pain and suffering. Many times this could end in carnage, as the Keeper would corrupt beasts, turning them against one another, almost always ending in bloodshed. Where and when such events happened was purely chance.

Closing the book slowly, Father Samuel leaned back in his chair with a soft sigh. He hoped that he was wrong. That it would all be proven to be some twisted fantasy the old mouse had believed in, a simple ghost story and nothing more. Glancing out the window he hoped that the vixen would be all right, as well as Ciel and John, they had all been away for so long, already the sun had begun to fall from its place in the heavens, journeying slowly towards the horizon, obscured by the winter clouds, snow flakes falling softly to the earth.

"Pray that I am wrong. Pray that I am wrong." The old mouse whispered in a tired voice, stretching in the his old reading chair a bit before pushing himself into the cushioning, everything seemed to tire him out these days. He knew he was getting on in his seasons, but he hated not having the energy, he couldn't even read without tiring. Yawning the father pulled his robes tightly around his body, shivering in the room despite the roaring fires below.

_Tomorrow is another day . . . _The mouse though to himself before the world faded away into darkness and the mouse felt himself fade into the unconscious realm, reality fading away rapidly as he suddenly found himself in a very familiar place. Opening his eyes the old mouse found himself in the main hall of the church, his perspective of the world around him shifting slowly before him, glancing around it seemed normal enough.

"Hello?" Father Samuel called out softly, he felt as though somebeast were watching him, something wasn't right.

"Hello, Father." A soft, feminine voice replied from behind the mouse, its tone full of sorrow. Turning around slowly the old mouse found a tiny beast sitting there in one of the church pews, a young vixen maid with dark red fur, that seemed to be strangely familiar to the mouse.

"And who might you be, my child?" The Father asked in a soft voice, not wishing to scare the little vixen.

"I am no beast." She whispered in response, her staring down at the floor in sorrow, she looked almost angry with herself. "I used to be, but not anymore."

"What do you mean by that?" Father Samuel asked, confused by the child's words as he walked slowly up the aisle towards her, slipping into the neighboring pew.

"I meant what I said." She muttered in response, sighing heavily as leaned on the pew before her.

"What are you doing here?" Father Samuel asked, trying to change the subject to something more understandable.

"Condolence, forgiveness . . .I'm not really sure myself. But now I'm here, what else matters?" She whispered with a soft chuckle.

"Condolence? Forgiveness? Why?" The old mouse asked, staring at the vixen for a moment, wondering how a child could have something so serious to need his forgiveness. The vixen looked up from the floor at the mouse for a moment before she smiled at him softly, staring into his eyes before holding up her paws and he saw it, from the tips of her claws to her elbows her fur was dyed crimson with blood, some of it still dripping from her body. "What did you do?" At first the mouse though that she had cut herself and immediately rushed to her side, but he found no cuts, no gashes on her arms, it was another beast's blood.

"I've come to warn you of the shadows. They are coming and this is what they shall do." She whispered softly, as the mouse help her arms, a mix of shock and disgust on his face. "The 'Silhouettes' are coming, you should flee while you can."

_The Silhouettes?_

_They're coming?_

_But isn't this a dream? _The old mouse whispered silently, before a sudden sound caught his attention, a banging on the church gates.

"Run Samuel . . ." The vixen whispered and suddenly Father Samuel found himself clutching air, the vixen had vanished, leaving an empty pew before him as the knocking continued. "Goodbye . . ." Her voice echoed softly in the hall, a whispered afterthought.

_Welcome to illusion, dear mouse . . ._

_Welcome to the shadows . . . _A voice whispered as somebeast whispered in his mind, as the old mouse felt the fur on the back of his neck stand on end, something was terribly wrong.

"Who's there?" He called out in a nervous voice, shivering slightly as he felt his skin crawl, a cold chill coursing down his spine from his head to the tip of his tail.

_Come now, mouse, you know the stories . . ._

_You know what I am . . ._

"No, you're just a story." The old mouse wasn't sure who he was trying to convince, but he knew he'd failed, he knew exactly what it was. "Keeper?"

"Exactly . . ." The voice answered, but no longer was it simply a voice in the back of the mouse's mind, there it stood before him, a figure cloaked in black robes, silhouette of the Dark Forest. "And you must know why I am here." Slowly the figure walked forwards, the darkness slowly fading away to reveal a young mouse, a twisted smile upon its face.

"Why?"

"Oh come now, you've read the stories, there is always truth to be found in legends. It is not as if it is such a foreign concept to your kind." The mouse sneered, as he stood just before the Father, a look of anger washing over its face.

"What is it?"

"Survival, your basic instinct and now mine as well thanks to your kind." The mouse sneered, spitting onto the ground next to the older mouse in disgust. "You are my corruption." Suddenly the mouse seemingly dissipated into darkness, reverting back to its true form as it still spoke.

_You are to be dealt with slowly for your crimes . . ._

_All shall be as it should be . . . _The voice whispered in a soft emotionless tone as the shadow gathered as Father Samuel watched helplessly, rooted to the spot as though he were a statue. Suddenly it spilled forward, the darkness pouring into the mouse's body, a pain like nothing he had ever felt coursing through him, tearing at his very soul.

_As it should be . . . _Those were the last words that Father Samuel ever heard as in the physical plane the mouse's body gave a great shudder, slipping from the chair onto the wooden floor Saint Ninian. Then with a single last gasping breath the mouse's body shook horribly and then laid still, a small trail of blood flowing from his mouth onto the wood, staining it crimson.

_As it should be . . ._ The voice echoed once more in the Father's chambers as the shadows crept from their corpse, fleeing out the window into the rapidly darkening world below, there was work to be done.


	5. Part Five

-Silhouettes-

-Part Five-

For the first time it what seemed like seasons the sun had found an escape from the cold embrace of the overcast sky. It's golden rays lit up the landscape with an eerily beautiful glow, the skeletal figures of the trees lifting their branches towards the life-giving sun. It was a picture anybeast would call the perfect picture of winter, a strange sort of warmth amidst the cold. As they marched along however, the beauty of the glistening landscape was the last thing on their minds as they glanced around from the vixen, following her paw prints in the snow, thankful for a break in the blizzard's wrath.

"How far could she have gone?" John wondered along for what must have been the third or fourth time within the hour. Used to his life within the walls of Saint Ninian's the otter wasn't as hardy as most of his kind, more of an indoor beast then Ciel.

"Pretty damn far . . ." Ciel muttered in a low voice, annoyed by the otter's repetition. He was starting to remind her of her little brother, always repeating himself until he heard his personal truth.

"On frost-bitten foot paws?" The otter continued on, ignoring the look of exasperation on the mouse maid's face as her paw shook terribly on her walking staff, trying hard to resist the urge to knock the otter out.

_Jus' think, you'd have ta carry 'im back . . . _She told herself, toying with the idea in her heard anyways to pass the time.

"Why do you think she left anyways?" The otter asked her, directly this time, finally changing the topic at paw.

"I don't know, maybe fear, maybe curiosity. Why does anybeast leave?" She replied in a soft tone, glancing around for any signs of the vixen as she shrugged her shoulders.

"She had to have a reason though . . . right?" He asked, confused as he stumbled through the snow, mostly out of breath by now as he tried to keep up with the more experienced mouse maid.

"Well . . .I guess we'll find out when we get to her." Ciel replied, her words suddenly failing as she looked ahead to find the end. Abruptly the paw prints seemed to simply vanish into nothingness, the snowscape ahead perfect and uncorrupted by anybeast. "Stop."

"What?" John whispered hoarsely, glancing at the mouse maid, confused by her words as he caught up to her, breathless. "What is it?"

"Doesn't somethin' seem wrong with this?" She whispered, a fresh chill crawling down her spine as she spun around, looking for something that continually eluded her. Something was close, something horrible.

"Ciel, look." The otter muttered with confused tone in his voice, pointing into the still snowscape. Following the otter's claw she found in, a small piece of fabric standing amongst the peaks and valleys of snow, an unnatural mountain peak.

"Wait here a moment." The young mouse maid whispered to the otter, holding the walking staff out in front of herself defensively as she stalked carefully towards the unnatural mound. Suddenly, just as she made it about halfway to the fabric she felt something snag her foot paw, sending her face first into a snow bank, a high pitched yelp escaping from her throat as she found herself blinded by the snow.

"Ciel!" John cried out as she fell, the snow bank falling with her to reveal the head of some creature, immediately leaping into action, the otter swung his own staff hard, bringing it down on the creature with a sickening crack. Whatever it was, it was unfazed by the blow as Ciel sat up, spitting out a bit of snow and John stood, confused as his staff rested in the creatures skull. "Are you all right?"

"Yeah, jus' tripped over . . ." Ciel trailed off as she glance to her right to find a pair of empty sockets staring at her, the tip of a staff buried in the top as her heart skipped a beat.

"What do you think it is?" John asked as he stepped towards the skeleton as Ciel carefully brushed snow off of it to reveal a corpse, most of the body had been picked apart by insects and buzzards, nearly all the bones were broken, most held together weakly by strands of cloth.

"Better question . . .who do you think it is?" She wondered as she examined the bones carefully, it was elongated and by the shape of it she guessed it were some sort of fox or perhaps a wolf, if one were to come so far south, but she bet it was a fox. "This is her family . . .that's why she ran . . .she had to come back to find this."

"What do you think she did when she found this?" John wondered with a lump in his throat as he glanced around the snow-covered forest, trying his best not to look at the skeleton before him.

"I dunno . . .never lost anybeast before . . .couldn't 'ave sat too well with her though . . .that much is fer sure . . ." Moving carefully the mouse maid moved to the otter's side, staring at the bones, she knew something horrible must have happened there. Suddenly she snapped her head around at the sound of paw steps falling in the snow.

"Are you okay?" John asked, frightened a little by the sudden look of fear on the mouse's face.

"You hear that?" In the background something was moving through the woods, circling them, the sounds of steps seeming to echo in the frigid winter air, resonating eerily. Glancing around with a frightful look on his face the otter immediately went to the corpses side, working quickly to free his staff.

"What is it?" John muttered as he finally freed the staff's end from the skull, which rolled onto the ground and a second later the otter as well.

"John!" A ball of black colored fury slammed into the otter from behind with an unearthly growl of what Ciel swore to be some sort unimaginable pain. Whatever it was, it was far from any sort of thinking above basic animal instinct as it slashed at the otter relentlessly, a cloak whipping about with it's movements.

"Get off! Get off!" John cried out, almost begging with creature as he fought to protect himself, several long gashes appearing as it attempted to disembowel the otter. Moving as quickly as she could, Ciel brought her staff down on the creature's spine, hitting a loud crack. The creature immediately stopped attacking John, who had by now been knocked unconscious, a small trickle of blood running from his head into the snow along with several others. It turned to face the mouse maid and Ciel heard herself let out a gasp as blue eyes burned into hers.

"Sana . . ." She muttered, not sure if it were a question or a statement, it didn't even particularly like Sana, it was a fox; its fur was dark, almost as if something had drained all the color from it. The vixen's eyes burned feverishly, a definite animal instinct lurking just beneath the surface of those clean orbs, all the intelligence, the awareness was gone. It was like looking into the eyes of a snake.

_What happened here? _Ciel wondered to herself as the vixen stalked towards her slowly on all fours, lips pulled back in a cruel snarl as a guttural growl rose from its throat. It moved ever slowly, just waiting for the mouse to make a move, waiting for the fear to set in, the instinct of self-preservation. Fight or flight. Fight or flight. That was her choice. Knowing this well enough she fought back the instincts that told her to run, to get as far as she could from the creatures, whether or not in was Sana.

"What 'appened ta you?" She tried questioning it, trying to see if there was anything else or if the vixen's mind was truly gone, lost somewhere far from here. Holding out her staff she tried baiting the snarling animal into making a move, trying to get some sort of advantage of the beast. "What is this, Sana? Where are ye?" She whispered to it, still holding out for some sort of miracle and then she got it, from behind the vixen a staff came down on her skull hard, knocking the vixen senseless. She stumbled forward a few steps before falling into the snow unconscious, tongue lolling out.

"Is it dead?" A very tired, beat-up looking John asked, standing weakly behind the body as he leaned heavily on his staff. Trails of blood had appeared all over the otter's body, open sores gushing freely, blocked only by scraps of cloth.

"Don't worry about that, just rest." Ciel whispered in response as she rushed to the otter's side, examining his briefly. To her relief the otter hadn't received any terrible wounds; most of them had been glancing and had left him with at least a dozen or so glorified scratches, luckily for him. "Ye should be fine . . .nothing went deep.

"Yeah, I know . . ." John whispered, standing a bit taller, one paw clutching his skull as bells seemed to echo in his head ceaselessly. "What was that?"

"I think that's what's left of her . . ." She replied, glancing down at the body as she tore off a bit of her cloak, making four long strips.

"Of Sana? How?" The otter asked as he sank slowly into the snow before falling completely, exhausted by the short lived 'battle' he had endured.

"I dunno, never 'eard of this sort o' thing before . . . guess death did that." Ciel paused for a moment, glancing to the west shores to find the sun descending steadily towards the horizon. "We're running out of daylight. We better get back." She murmured as she went to the vixen's body, the otter simply staring up into the sky.

"Aye . . .but what about her?" John asked, glancing up to find the mouse maid tying the vixen wrist and ankles together with the strips of cloth.

"That's the easy part, mate." She muttered, with a glance at the way back, their paw prints disappearing far ahead, it was a long journey back.

By the time Ciel and John returned to Saint Ninians the sun was hovering on the edge of day and night, lighting up the entire forest with crimson rays. They found the church mostly as they had left it, nothing out of place at all save for the windows, the normal glow of the candles absent from them. Moving quickly they slipped into the building to find it devoid of life, only a pair of candles to light their way as they moved into the main aisle, the vixen's still unconscious form slung over Ciel's shoulders as she leaned on John for support.

"Set 'er down 'ere." Ciel commanded and together they set the vixen down on one of the many benches before moving quickly down the aisle towards the pair of candles that stood at the front of the hall.

"Should we light the rest so we can at least see?" John asked as he held up one of the candles, welcomed its warmth, no matter how miniscule.

"May as well." The mouse maid said as she picked up the other candle and a few minutes later they had lit all the candles, lighting the hall with their flickering glow.

"Much better." John muttered to himself as he lit the last candle, setting his own down next to it. Glancing around the hall the otter immediately felt more comfortable despite the constant burn of his body from the cold and the cuts that littered his torso and limbs. The frigid cold finally gone from his mind the otter glanced around, wondering where everybeast was, the hall almost seemed abandoned. "Ciel?" He called out as he found her missing from his sight, a trickle of fear running down his spine as he moved cautiously towards the front on the hall.

"John?" He heard her voice echo in response, coming from somewhere in the back.

"Ciel, where are you?" The otter called, hurrying a little more as the shadows seemed to ebb and flow around him in strange patterns. He felt himself give a little involuntary shiver of fear as he stared at the shadows high above on the ceiling as they shifted ominously, like a predator watching its prey from the bushes. It felt as though every movement were being watched by some unknown presence and upon reaching the door he glanced back to where they had set down the vixen, to his relief she sat there still, unconscious and oblivious to the world. "Ciel?"

"Right here." He heard the mouse maid whisper emotionlessly as he walked into the small room in between the kitchen and the main hall to find her standing there, a blank look on her face.

"What wrong?" John asked the mouse maid, a look of worry on his face as he saw the blank stare; she almost looked dead to him.

"Just look . . ." She whispered in response, pointing towards the fire. Following her gaze he saw it, all the beds full, white sheets draped over their former guests, their blood dying the sheets crimson. John felt sick suddenly, it was one of the few times he had seen such things in his life and he had never gotten used to it, the smell was thick in the air, threatening to gag the otter.

"What happened here?" He wondered aloud, frozen in shock, unable to even cover his muzzle and shield himself from the wretched smell.

"I wish I knew . . ." Ciel muttered softly as she wondered over to the first bed, pulling back the slightly to reveal the head, she could barely recognize it save for the eyes. The kindly old eyes staring up at her from another world, face frozen in what seemed to be some primal terror. Pulling back the covers entirely she found designs carved into the mouse's flesh, horribly intricate designs that circled and twisted around the mouse's body. "Who would do this?"

_It couldn't have been true, could it? _Ciel wondered to herself, the dream suddenly seeming fresh in her mind, the eerie omens and the shadow. _How could that be? It's impossible? Isn't it?_

"Why would anybeast do such a thing? What did, Father Samuel ever do to anybeast?" John almost looked on the verge of tears or at the very least at the edge of hysterics as he stared down at the mouse, his former mentor, the beast that had served as his family for so many seasons, just gone in that one moment.

"Why does anybeast kill anybeast?" Ciel wondered aloud, wishing that somehow the sun could roll back the time and bring them all back, the stench in the air a horrid reminder.

"Only one who commits such acts can ever know . . .they are the only one that can comprehend such insanity." John muttered to himself airily, repeating what the now gone mouse had taught him in some season long past. "Pleasure . . .that's what it was . . ." The otter whispered to himself, an eerie look in his eyes as he stared into the mouse's frozen eyes.

"Pleasure? What kind of creature could take pleasure in this?" Ciel asked in a loud, a look of complete shock gracing her features, waving a paw to indicate the mouse and the half-dozen other beasts that had similar fates.

_It can't be . . . it's not possible. _Ciel murmured to herself silently, glancing down at Samuel's corpse when her concentration was broken by a loud crash.

"What was that?" Ciel said with a start, panic flooding her mind as she glanced around for a source of the sound, it had come from the hall, echoing eerily off the walls.

"I'll see." John stated in an almost unnatural tone, disappearing out into the hall before Ciel even had the chance to respond. Ciel stood at the bed, listening to the soft sounds of the otter's paw steps as they echoed in the hall, continuous and almost comforting for the mouse maid, but suddenly they fell silent.

"John? Did you find it?" Ciel shouted towards the doorway, but there was no response, simple silence and nothing more. "John? Are you there?" She shouted once more, straining her ears, trying to hear even the softest of sounds, but there was nothing save for the sound of her own frightened breathing. Moving slowly on unsteady legs the mouse maid wandered towards the door, keeping a paw on the wall at all times, claws digging in with fright.

_Be there . . .please . . . _Finally she made it to the doorway, she stood there for a moment, trying to collect herself.

"John? What's goin' on?" She called out into the hall, her voice cracking slightly. However, only silence greeted her calls, only the sound of her own heartbeat thudding away in her chest as a comfort. "John, come on, this isn't funny." She yelled, fantasies playing out in her mind, wishes that everything could somehow be made right as well as the absolutes horrors playing themselves out together. Everything seemed possible for that moment as she refused logic, refused instinct, refused what the voices in the back of her mind were telling her.

_Everybeast is gone; you're all alone, little maid. _The voices whispered, but she silenced them and forced herself into the main hall, eyes squeezed shut. Opening them slowly she found only darkness, the hall nowhere to be found, its features lost in the shadows, candles extinguished.

"John?" She whispered frightfully, peering into the great void of darkness before her, everything was missing, everything askew. "Sana?" She whispered, hopeful for even the vixen, but there was nothing there.

_Ciel . . ._

_Come . . . _A voice whispered in her mind, somewhat familiar, but still that of a stranger. A shiver coursing down her spine, the mouse maid backed into the room where she had come from, fearful of the gathering darkness outside her little sanctuary.

_Run, little maid._

_You should have listened._

_You should have run. _The voice continued as the maid dug her claws into the wooden wall of the room, her breathing erratic and shallow as she stared at the darkness, as it seemed to pulsate and flow around. Turning around, Ciel glanced at the bed to find them all empty, only the bloodied sheets left behind as the fireplace casting an eerie orange glow across the beds.

"Who's there?" Ciel whispered frightfully, eyes glancing every which way as she stood rooted to the spot, trying to banish the fears from her mind.

_This isn't real . . .it can't be._

_It's jus' some fantasy. _She whispered silently to herself, trying to build up some sort of confidence, some sort of delusion to keep herself safe.

"Hello again, little maid." Turning, Ciel found a figure standing at the bottom of the staircase, holding a glowing lantern that seemingly gave off no light. "Come." It beckoned, disappearing up the stairs.

"Wait!" Ciel yelled after it, impulsively giving pursuit, taking the steps two by two. As soon as she reached the top of the stairs she found herself alone once more in the darkness. "Hello?" She called out, her voice echoing down the hallway, a bit of fear creeping back into her mind.

"Come . . ." The voice whispered and the mouse maid found the lantern once more, bouncing eerily in the shadows. Ciel took off like a shot, giving chase to the light out of some twisted desperation, running from the infinite darkness around her.

"Come back!" She shouted after it as she ran, never able to catch up with it, finally she simply collapsed onto the ground, exhaustion catching up with her as the light bounced and swayed in the shadows before simply disappearing. "Please . . .don't leave . . ." She whispered weakly, staring at the spot where the light had disappeared. "Come back . . ." As if on cue, everything was suddenly light, a brilliant, blinding white filling the mouse maid's vision and she found herself suddenly in a forest, the forest she had been in mere hours ago, but this time there was no snow, the ground was littered with leaves, a cool autumn breeze blowing through the trees.

"Help . . ." A soft voice whispered, the sound echoing lightly through the forest. Glancing up from her place on the ground Ciel found that the world had a red tint to it, an unreal quality that told her that it couldn't be real. "Please, anybeast . . ."

"Hello?" Ciel croaked out as she lay still on the leaf-covered ground, staring into the forest, trying to find the source of the voice.

"Help, please . . ." That was its only response, but it was enough for the mouse maid to find the source, there in a pile of leaves next to what served as the beaten path. She rose quickly and ran to the small pile, hope dashed as soon as she saw him, a young fox lying amidst a pool of his own blood, chest ripped wide open as he sightless eyes glanced around with the helpless desperation of a beast facing death, pain forgotten as he hovered on the border of life. "Help . . ." The fox's voice was soft gurgle as he tried to speak around the blood that clogged his throat, suffocating him slowly.

"What happened here?" Ciel whispered, holding the fox's paw in what she hoped was comforting manner as she choked back a bit of bile, the smell of blood suffocating as it hung heavy in the cool fall air.

"It came . . ." The fox answered, swallowing a bit of blood as he spoke in an almost inaudible whisper, it was a miracle it was even still alive with such wounds. "Please . . .help her . . ." With those words the fox's eyes flickered and closed, his breathing choked as he collapsed into unconscious and finally fading away into death. Ciel stared at the fox for a moment, tears blurring her vision, she felt alone again, helpless in the horrid, crimson hued forest. A soft wind blew through her fur, almost as though nature were trying to comfort her to no avail, she simply stared at the death before her, staring as the wind seemed to sweep the world away and within moments she found herself staring at a mangled skeleton, the bones littered across the forest floor.

_Can you see, dear maid?_

_Can you truly see? _The voice whispered softly in her ear, the wind wrapped around her body.

"What is this?" Ciel whispered in a choked voice, staring down at the pile of bones, all she saw was this death, the bloodstained beds the only thing she remembered. Death was all that mattered, this line between life and death upon which she found herself standing, a thin blurred line that all beasts feared.

_You do see it, don't you?_

_You see the purpose._

"You see clearly, dear maid, do you not?" The voice continued, a silhouette appearing before her, just behind the fox's ancient corpse. A flowing black grab gracing the shadow's figure, it stood there, an indiscernible figure in the crimson forest. "You see the purpose, you see the basis."

"Survival." Ciel whispered in response, never once glancing up at the shadow, staring at the skeleton as it cracked and melted into dust, blowing away in the breeze, the forest following suit as the mouse maid found herself once more in the hall, the candles lighting in up eerily as she found herself standing over John's corpse, a crimson stained blade in her paw. Staring at him for a moment, the mouse maid glanced from the blade to his corpse and to the blade again, disbelieving of such a reality.

_No . . ._

_No . . . _Ciel repeated the word over and over in her mind as the blade slipped from her paw to fall with a clatter on the cold floor. She felt her strength simply give out as she collapse to the ground, leaning against one of the benches, staring into the otter's cold, unseeing eyes, a look of shock written on his face.

"You see now, don't you?" A voice whispered as Ciel sat motionless on the floor, body sapped of all its strength, mind unable to comprehend the reality in which it found itself. Suddenly she found it in front of her, a pair of blue eyes surrounded by shadow staring into her own with a look of what was almost pity for the maid. "Tis a shame, indeed." The voice whispered into her ear, glancing at the corpse of the otter. "One of the few that understood, but he's gone now. Sacrificed to the greater good." It whispered and Ciel could almost picture the sickening smile that must have been on its face as it spoke those words.

"Why?"

"Oh, so you don't understand. Come now. You know the fundamental fact. Everybeast knows it. Deep down you all bow down to it. That's your cowardice." The eyes told the whole story, Ciel found it within their cool depths, fear disguised by pity.

"It is yours as well."

"Only because of your kind. You are the reason for such corruption, it is their pain I feel, his pain. That is what I thrive upon. Such creations can only have one end." The voice spoke through thinly disguised hatred, but finally Ciel understood it, she knew what this was all for.

"End is near . . ."Ciel whispered as she heard the scrape of metal on wood, the glint of the blade in the candlelight as it was raised above.

"That is your hope." The voice whispered thoughtfully, a paw holding her neck as the blade cut through the air towards her, plunging deeply into her chest. She felt no pain as it cut through her body. She only felt a calm, cold realization of the fact before there was nothing. No pain, only darkness and nothing more.

Soft golden rays of sunlight filtered down through the trees as the vixen watched, the golden light reflected off the rivers surface, casting complex patterns on the ground. A soft autumn breeze blew through her fur as she sat on her mother's knee, watching the river as her father sat at the edge, showing her brother how to fish. It was another beautiful day of the fall season, Sana almost wished they would never end, that she could just wait in this moment forever and ever. Wait in her sanctuary from the world, stay within these innocent memories.

_This is your truth . . ._

_The delusion can only take you so far . . ._

_Wake up, dear vixen . . . _She heard a voice in the back of her mind, but she couldn't understand it, all of it unintelligible mumblings, inane ramblings. Glancing up the young vixen smiled, snuggling into her mother's arms.

"It's beautiful isn't it, Sana?" Her mother asked in the soft, singsong voice she always seemed to use, brushing a paw through her child's fur idly.

"Yeah, mama . . .it is . . ." Sana whispered back, watching the waters ebb and flow.

"Just a shame that your father and brother don't seem to share the same appreciation." Her mother muttered with a soft laugh as Teague jumped into the river, splashing water all over his father who merely glared at his son, before laughing at the now sopping wet fox.

"It's okay, mama. We'll appreciate it for them." Sana whispered, playing with fur on her mother's arms in a sort of idle laziness that such days provided.

"Just wish these days would never end." The older vixen whispered to her daughter with a soft sigh, staring into the forest, a blank look in her eyes. "It can't last forever, Sana. You can't stay here, it's coming and nothing can prevent it."

"What are you talking about, mama?" Sana asked, raising her gaze to look at her mother, but suddenly she was gone and the young vixen found herself on a rock overlooking a great chasm. "Mama? Mama, where are you?" She whispered frightfully as a cold breeze whipped through her fur, before she was forcibly snapped back to reality to find herself on the roof of Saint Ninians, snow tearing at her as she sat, staring at the ground far below.

_This is your choice, Sana . . ._

_This is the line of transition . . ._

_Last chance . . . _A part of her mind, her own mind, whispered to her softly. The snows below seemed so inviting for she saw not the death waiting below, but the life before. Soft breezes and beautiful sunshine, it seemed so long since she had seen such things, all that was left was the winter's cold touch on her shoulders telling her to turn back, to cling to life.

"You do not want such things, vixen." A voice called from behind her and turning she found it standing there. The living shadows, the silhouette of the past standing there, a smug look in its black eyes. "You cannot want such things, it is not your nature."

"You speak as if you know."

"I do know, I know all your kind, I know your cowardice better then any of you could ever. You do not wish to face such demons. You would give anything for just a few moments more." It said with a sneer, taking a few confident steps forwards, but Sana saw the fear in the shadow, sensed its apprehension.

"Then why do you fear this?" Sana asked, taking a step backwards towards the edge. "For what other reason then fear. What is it that you need?"

"I need nothing from you, vixen." The shadow growled, seemingly offended by such a remark as it drew to within an arm's length of the vixen.

"If that is . . ." Sana whispered with a slight shrug of her shoulders before she glanced behind herself at the ground below, finally realizing why she was there and what the voices had meant. Things couldn't stay as they were, the past couldn't last forever and there she stood, the last thread to the past left to be severed. With soft smile at the shadow she backed out to the ledge, staring always at the shadow before she allowed the wind to take her, footpaws slipping from the shingles and she felt herself plunge downwards for moment before something caught her arm. Looking up she found the shadow there, a paw gripping her arm tightly as she dangled on the edge of death, the vixen however merely smiled. "So it is." She whispered softly to herself, voice swept away by the wind before with her free paw raked her claws across the shadows arm. With a silenced scream the silhouette let go and she found herself free, floating in the air, white flurries surrounding her, nothing save for a brilliant, beautiful white. In those few moments alone in the air, the earth far below she lost herself in that memory, just her sitting on her mothers lap, staring out at the river and then there was nothing, not even the shadows could find her.


	6. Epilogue and thanks

-Silhouettes-

-Epilogue-

The sun flickered into life upon the horizon, soft golden rays of light creating a grand landscape of shadows upon the still, snowscape below. The night had passed, the receding darkness seeming to take the clouds with it, the blizzard dissipating into a slight winter breeze that swept through the trees, rattling their frozen branches, shaking icicles loose from there holds. The building sat still and lonely amidst the snowscape, a crouching monolith surrounded by forest, the windows dark and all the halls were silent. The once pristine architecture seemed ancient now, the stained glass worn and broken, the intricate carving worn down to a blank slate of stone, the door rotted and dilapidated. It stood as a lonely reminder, a mere shell of what it had been, a tombstone if nothing more.

Outside at the front of the construct she lays, body crumpled and broken as warm orange rays flow over her fallen form. She too, now merely a shell of her former self, uninhabited as the crimson silhouette formed around her body, staining the once innocent snows. She had breathed her last breaths as a free beast, free from evil, free from innocence, free from the world, her empty blue eyes staring out at an indiscernible landscape, everything a brilliant white with glorious freedom. It had been a few days since the blizzard had enveloped the lands of Mossflower. It had been an event to remember, one to twist before it would fade into obscurity, just as the building itself soon would, save for the spirit hidden with the shadows of its corridors. It waited there, weakened greatly with no real source of sustenance; it was beginning to starve slowly, but surely, just as they were supposed to, just as their design demanded

_Existence brought about for the sole purpose of ending in such a short time . . ._

_What a silly little concept . . ._

The silhouette wondered to itself silently, drawing on the thoughts of beasts long since past, their memories comprising its consciousness. It waited there in a state of limbo, trapped within the shadows upon which it existed; a mere shadow of the gates it had been forced from like some unwanted child.

The seasons passed like this, the silhouette living on the occasional unfortunate soul that wandered into the church, biding its time until it could move on from the prison, Saint Ninian's. Summer turned to winter and back to summer, but none mattered to the shadow, it waited. It became more careful over time, allowing for small families to inhabit its domain, to share its cell as it fed off of the young, slowly and cautiously, inducing some sickness, but never enough to scare them from their supposed 'home'.

_The time shall come . . ._

_The moment of destiny will come . . ._

These were the only thoughts that calmed the silhouette as it rationed its 'food', clinging to the pathetic existence it had come to know and cherish. Only thoughts of retribution kept it going until the day came and they came . . .

It had been a good season for the shadow; a flock of jackdaws had taken what was left of the building as their roost. Far too stupid to leave at the silhouette's inconspicuous signs, unwilling to give up one sort of safety for another. A sick fledgling here, a missing one of their flock there didn't seem to much matter to them. Never did two and two come together, but then they came on that day. A small group of beasts, voles and mice the shadow believed, and the jackdaws, true to their nature, had attacked them. They had slayed one of the smaller beasts, a young mouse maid to be specific, much to the silhouettes pleasure. They had left and it had almost seemed as though it would remain that simple, but then they came, bearing torches, their intentions clear.

_This is the day, isn't it?_

_This is that day of fate I have sought . . ._

The silhouette thought silently to itself and immediately it leapt into action with what little strength it had conserved over the seasons. It disappeared from the shadows as the flames took the building, the sound of crackling wood filling the soft evening air as tendrils of smoke curled from the ancient structure as it seemed to breath its last before collapsing into a fiery wreckage, a final resting grounds for those lost over the many seasons.

However the silhouette lived on, prepared to bide its time for as long as needed, reducing itself to a mere voice in the back of an otter's mind, a whispering echo of the past. It would wait there, it would makes its journey to the homeland, the end would come and the shadow would be there, smiling as the Dark Forest fell before its newfound wraith. Such a day would come; it would find retribution . . .

-End-

- - - - - -

-'Thank you' s-

Thanks to Neri Scathe, clara200, Fabulous Flamer, Dr Flareon, Waterflash Arrowotter, Bunny Hooded Bombchu, Red Ferret, Aubreta, Kirjava Deamon, one who says too little, Agent D and Shadow Of Silver for their reviews.

And special thanks to Red Ferret, Neri Scathe and Aubreta for their support and help on this story as well.


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